Things you need to know about GREAT TITS!
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- čas přidán 9. 07. 2024
- The great tit is a common garden bird and a familiar sight in parks, woodlands and urban areas. In this video you will find details about what they eat, what they sound like, when and where they nest plus lots more interesting great tit facts.
Throughout the autumn and winter they live in small flocks, often with other small bird species but are easily recognised by their striking black caps and white cheek patches. They also have green shoulders with a bright yellow chest which has a dark line running down its centre. This line is the easiest way to sperate the sexes, in males it is thicker and runs all the way down the stomach whereas in females it is less pronounced and might fade out as it runs down the body. They have a wingspan of 25 cm and grow to a maximum weight of 22grams. Although great tits are found all across northern Europe, those in the UK have longer beaks than their continental cousins. Scientists believe that these rapidly evolved in order to reach the food inside garden bird feeders.
Great tits are one of the most common species to visit these garden feeders where they seem to enjoy peanuts, sunflower hearts and fat balls. During the spring and summer when invertebrates are in high supply, this is their food of choice, particularly spiders and other small insects which they pick from the undersides of leaves and from crevices amongst the bark. Where these insects are out of reach, great tits have been known to use pine needles to extract them. During the colder months, alongside the food that people provide, they will also eat fruits and berries.
Great tits begin to claim nesting sites and territories from as early as January but usually nesting doesn’t begin until late march or April. They naturally nest in holes or cavities and quite often make use of man made nest boxes. The nest is a deep cup shaped structure of moss, twigs and grass, lined with feathers and down and once its completed the female will lay around twelve eggs that are cream in colour specked with brown. She will incubate these eggs alone for 13 days until they hatch at which point both parents take on the feeding duties. With so many mouths to feed they are constantly in and out of the nest carrying beakfulls of caterpillars and insects. With this high protein diet the chicks grow fast and can be ready to fledge the nest from as little as 16 days. After this the parents continue to feed them for another 2 weeks until they are fully independent. Each pair usually two batches of young in a season but in good years they may nest for a third time.
Great tits have an amazing repertoire of calls and have been known to mimic other species. The most common song they produce is a repetitive teecha teecha……. But I was once told if you hear a bird noise you don’t recognise, its most likely a great tit. The average life span for a great tit is around 3 years but the longest on record made it to a whopping 13 years and 11 months of age.
#greattit #britishbirds #britishwildlife
Some of the footage used in this video was obtained using creative commons licences, the originals and their licence details can be found at:
Feeding up close HD • Great Tit, Feeding
Various footage good • great tit koolmees
In tree multiple with caterpillar • Great Tit - Parus Major
Nest cam footage inside showing feeding • Breedin' and Feedin' i...
Feeding on hanging peanut feeder • 11.11.15 Mésange charb...
Parents in and out of nest box from outside busy • Video
On sunflower feeder close • Great Tits at Our Retr...
In trees in winter good • Mésange charbonnière...
Eating peanut clear • Kohlmeise pickt Nuss -...
Chattering on branch close up • Carbonero común. Parus...
Shaky footage but good teacher teacher • Sýkora koňadra (Parus ...
Eating seeds from bird table • Széncinege // Great ti...
Extremely clear footage of bird close up • Mésange charbonnière m...
Bird preening in tree • Mésange charbonnière ...
Parents feeding young • Newborn great tit bird...
Searching crags for insects • Great Tit foraging on ...
Front of nest box • Széncinege // Great ti...
Bird on stump • Cinciallegra.wmv
Building nest • Nesting box: Great tit...
Some of the images used in this video were obtained using creative commons licences. The originals and their licence details can be found at:
"Great Tit Eggs" by Jon Glittenberg is licensed under CC BY 2.0
"Tit Hatchlings (~2 days old)" by Jon Glittenberg is licensed under CC BY 2.0
Thumbnail: www.flickr.com/photos/4224496...
In the late 1980's a pair of Great Tits nested in chassis of the mobile rail crane in our yard. The crane was in daily use loading track materials for relaying work but the pair continued to feed the young, with one parent feeding at the loading point and the other feeding at the top of the yard where the sleepers were stored. This went on for nearly a fortnight and during that time we had to take the crane down to the station almost 3/4 mile away. We scheduled it so as to be back from doing one urgent lift within about 20 minutes but were worried about the baby birds so got the job done as rapidly as possible. On our return to the yard the parents were waiting near the points and resumed feeding as if nothing had happened! We were very much relieved when a few days later they had flown the nest and were being fed in the hedgerow. Absolutely amazing birds to hatch a brood amid all the activity of a busy rail depot with a mobile nest box!
This guy knew what he was doing with that title lol
It was a terrible idea to be honest, a lot of people who search for the title is looking for a video about birds lol.
@@AShotOfWildlife I was looking for the BBC documentary about the birds then found this lol
@@GrowingDownUnder ah, I've changed my answer. I didn't mean to sound accusatory lol.
yes he did
❤ Blue Tits, Coal Tits (Crested Tits?) and Great Tits are such pretty little birds, and lovely to have them in our towns and gardens. I'm fairly sure we have at least a pair in our gardens / on our estate here in SE London (heading out toward Bromley and Kent) as I hear that song quite often though (due to my disabilities), I dont get out 'n' about to actually _see_ any of our wild birds or animals, I do hear (cats & dogs), foxes, pigeons, crows, magpies, robins, blackbirds, gulls, parakeets, and, (I think) chaffinches, so at least I get to enjoy some varieties of different animal and bird sounds - not _just_ the distant rumbles of trains, or the differing types of road traffic!! 😊🏴♥️🇬🇧🙂🖖
Saying blue tits are odd but that's what they are called
We got one coming to our garden for the first time ever and I love the sound it makes! Makes me feel alive. Still nothing beats a calm Blackbird singing in the evening.
They are the most adorable of them garden Birds ...
I agree!
For the first time this year, we were treated to both the male and female parents feeding their three babies on the feeding station in our garden. Truly wonderful to see and a cacophony of sound!
Thank you so much for your video it was very helpful for me as I’ve got a fallen little bird which was brought to me by my husband from a vehicle yard ,it was around 1 week old, and I reared it at home , feeding boiled eggs and soaked cat food for 2 three days, then it began to scratch its body and I searched internet for and found out it is because of the food I have given I was so worried.But luckily I found a bird food , which was ideal, and now this little birdy has grown feathers and had opened his eyes now I know it’s a great Tit.I live in Japan and I’m hoping to release this bird as soon as he can depend himself.Once again thanks to your video.❤
Fantastic video
I love these little birds. Had newbies in my garden this summer and it is fascinating to watch them. I've got a special feeder now for the smaller birds and they're eating me out of house n home.....but I don't care.
When I was a kid we had loads of these, also blue tits etc as my mum would hang feeders on the end of the washing line. Thier fave seemed to be butchers beef suet, in an old net. In Winter this stuff would disappear in a flurry of brightly coloured birds in SECONDS! Nice one Liam. ⭐👍
I saw a couple of these whilst out on a walk the other day. As it was cold, I was glad of this video to positively identify them. (But more seriously...)
Please keep up your great work making such informative and entertaining videos. I especially like the ones with your own footage in them. Thank you.
Thank you. You'll be glad to hear that I am currently uploading a video full of my own footage. Lots of birds, some surprises and a whole lot of changing weather.
@@AShotOfWildlife Great to read! I look forward to viewing it.
Keep up the good work Liam, your videos are very interesting and informative 👍🏼
Thank you very much. I've tried keeping it up since your comment :)
Thanks Liam for sharing the facts about the Great tit. A bird very common also in Sweden. have a good weekend! // Bertil.
Thank you for sharing that was very informative
Great video Liam 😊
Thank you!
I love watching your videos, they’re always really cool!! 😄
Thank you :) I’m gradually working my way through every species I can think of.
I always live this birds.
Every year we have a nest, or two, in our garden.
Greetings, Jacq
Great stuff Jacq. They're interesting little characters. Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment.
Cheers, Liam
I did binge watch all your videos but must have missed this one - so thanks for linking to it in your 'how long can garden birds live for' one. Great vid!
Great video, Liam! I enjoy these videos detailing facts about different bird species. I keep hearing great tit songs / calls on my way to the office and back, but rarely have the time to stop and observe them. Thanks to your video, I'll get out now. Thanks again Liam. :)
Loving these vids lately, lovely close ups and to the point info, very chill great work.
Thank you!
Finally learned how to tell males and females appart - among other things. Thanks for the interesting infos!😃
Brilliant, I am glad to help!
Love this video. Learned something new about this cute neighborhood family synonymous with announcement of spring🌱
I love this cute birds a lot. I love your video most!
Thank you!
Amazing video, learned a lot. I got one calling right under my window for a couple months during the last two years, love to hear it
Thanks!
Thank you so much!
Fascinating video as always mate
Thank you. I’m glad you enjoyed it
Love these beauties, thanks for the info!
Thank you
Your videos are great and really EDUCATING, THANKYOU.
Thanks Eileen. I'm glad you are enjoying them. More to come soon.
Yup, did learn something new. Great videos!
Great, thank you.
Really enjoyuable series thanks Liam! I would love to hear their sound and song a bit more (for identification purposes) in your videos. Take care. x
Cheers. I'm going to add that into future videos :) Stay tuned.
Many thanks Liam !!!
Thanks so much for sharing. To us about the great tit I love all wildlife and look forward to hearing from you ❤❤❤❤
Love their song !
Amazing 👏
Great video
i love birds!!!!!
Spot on mate. Nice one! Yes I did learn something, that the black band down the front is often less prominent in the female. Thanks dude! 👍🙂👍
Waheyy! I didn’t know that those in the uk had longer beaks until making this video.
Your name will be mentioned in the next video mate :) Rattus norvegicus
@@AShotOfWildlife Cracking! 👍
Love your videos. 🇦🇺
Thank you!
I love ‘em, our suburban garden is blessed with many of them whereas I’ve yet to see one Blue Tit this year.
Thankfully though, we are once again seeing many groups of sparrows mobbing our feeders and one of the Robin pairs has chosen one of the nesting pouches I concealed in one of the large dense bushes in the back garden.
thank you, great video.
Glad you liked it!
Love it, you're a breath of fresh air, lot of YT is rubbish.
Thanks Rob!
thank you for this lovely video
I have a pair nesting in my gargern for the 3rd time in a row, after waiting fot it to happend for a long time
Alon, Israel
You can see this man holding in laughter in the intro
I don't know, this was probably my 100th attempt at doing the intro so by then I was a pro lol
@@AShotOfWildlife omg I got hearted and got a reply from the channel
@Happ boi eventually I get round to responding to everyone lol.
Greater video
Thanks Preston!
Thanks.
Thank you
teacher teacher...ah....i've always known it as squeaky wheelbarrow wheel
See there is also the coal tit, and I describe them as a squeaky bicycle pump. Did you enjoy the video?
The great ti-
Are there nests water proof.i hope because its heavy rain tonight.
Ayus mga video mo..Ganda
Translation wont work but hopefully this is a positive response.
@@AShotOfWildlife he said your videos are fine and nice
@@trunki006 thank you!
Dear liam ❤❤❤🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉😊
One thing i surely need to know is that on will always haunt me with bacon in its mouth beacuse my pfp
The flock in my backyard that comes every winter inspired me
Congrats for only saying one sentence that sounds funny.
Which one? The first?
Hi
Google image RuneScape Bot lol
Lol, are you saying that looks like me?
@@AShotOfWildlife First impression, even the shirt color matches. No offence of course mate, love your work!
Almost all common "garden birds" are just woodland species that adapted to gardens as their natural habitats declined and degraded over time. g
Good example is woodpeckers and tits which are both tree hole nesters but tit have adapted to nest boxrs while woodpecker still need large trees
That is true. I'm trying to think of species that are now garden species but which come from other habitats.
Sparrowhawk more clearly woodland birds
@@AShotOfWildlife wrens
@@AShotOfWildlife buzzards are rare in gardens wouldnt call it a garden bird. They are birds of open habitats not of enclosed garden. You may be lucky to see a buzzard if you live further out in the countryside
@@AShotOfWildlife i thought buzzards were absent from my area because i never saw any in any place even nature reserves neither did peregrines apparently they are present in those areas and it felt weird discovering that buzzards are the most common bird of prey in britain. Even then do not think they adapted as quick as sparrowhawks. In short it will be more likely that sparrowhawks will be in my neighbourhood
😂😂😂😂😂😂 plz new video about mags 😂😂😂😂😂😂 kidding 🎉🎉❤❤❤👍👍👌👌👌🙏🙏🙏 best wishes❤❤😂😂🎉🎉
They also eat brains
Thank you for showing, what a great channel you have.👍
We have Great tits that have just started to build a nest in our nest box, on the side of our house. I was wondering what I can do to help them along?
John.
Thanks for watching, im glad you are enjoying the channel.
If I was you I would just sit back and let them do their thing. What you must not do is go to close to the box as even if you dont disturb the parents, you may raise the interest of local predators. Goos luck and let me know how they get on!
@@AShotOfWildlife
Thank you for your advice.
We do have a Sparrowhawk visiting the garden from time to time but I'm hoping they will be okay. I have food out so they don't have to go too far from the nest site.
I'll let you know how it goes.
All the best!.
John.
Hi there.
so my Great tits fledged the nest this morning. I noticed that they were feeding them less yesterday, to try to tempt them to come out of the box. No sure how many chicks left the nest but a Sparrow hawk got one and two were dead in the box.😣